1923–24 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team

The 1923–24 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team (variously "North Carolina", "Carolina" or "Tar Heels") was the fourteenth varsity college basketball team to represent the University of North Carolina as a part of the Southern Conference for the NCAA season.[N 1] The head coach was Norman Shepard, coaching in his first and only season with the Tar Heels. Their fast play and defense earned them the nickname the "White Phantoms", use as an alternative nickname for the Tar Heels into the 1940s.

1923–24 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball
SoCon Regular Season Co-Champion SoCon Tournament Champion Helms Foundation National Champion Premo-Porretta National Champion
Conference	Southern Conference
1923–24 record	26–0 (7–0 SoCon)
Head coach	Norman Shepard (1st season)
Captain	Winton Green
Home arena	Bynum Gymnasium

1923–24 Southern Conference men's basketball standings
	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Tulane	10	–	0		1.000			21	–	1		.955
North Carolina†	7	–	0		1.000			26	–	0		1.000
Georgia	7	–	0		1.000			16	–	5		.762
Alabama	5	–	1		.833			12	–	4		.750
Kentucky	6	–	2		.750			13	–	3		.813
Mississippi State	8	–	4		.667			13	–	8		.619
Virginia	3	–	2		.600			12	–	3		.800
Tennessee	5	–	5		.500			10	–	8		.556
South Carolina	2	–	2		.500			11	–	9		.550
Georgia Tech	4	–	5		.444			9	–	13		.409
Mississippi	2	–	4		.333			16	–	6		.727
Washington and Lee	2	–	4		.333			9	–	5		.643
NC State	2	–	4		.333			7	–	16		.304
Maryland	1	–	2		.333			5	–	7		.417
Vanderbilt	1	–	3		.250			7	–	15		.318
Florida	0	–	2		.000			5	–	10		.333
Sewanee	0	–	2		.000			2	–	7		.222
Virginia Tech	0	–	4		.000			5	–	13		.278
Auburn	0	–	6		.000			4	–	9		.308
Clemson	0	–	6		.000			2	–	14		.125
LSU	0	–	7		.000			8	–	12		.400
† Tournament winner As of April 30, 1924; Rankings from none

During the Elon game, Cartwright Carmichael was shifted to guard and Bill Dodderer took over at center.

Roster and Schedule

The Tar Heels had played the previous two seasons without a coach.[2] The Tar Heel wrote that "If Carolina continues to lead the South in this branch of athletics, a capable coach will have to be employed."[3] On January 16, 1923, it was announced that Graduate Manager of Athletics Charles T. Woollen tapped current law student and Freshman football and basketball coach Norman Shepard to become head coach of the varsity basketball team.[4] Shepard had turned down the opportunity to coach the varsity team prior to their previous season because he felt he was busy coaching the Freshman teams already and was completing his Bachelor of Sciences in Commerce degree.[5][6] Shepard had played Freshman football and basketball at Carolina in 1919 then left the school for Davidson College where he was an athlete there as well.[4] Shepard had a brief stint in minor league baseball and attended the University of Illinois' coaching school led by football coach Robert Zuppke.[4] After taking the position, Shepard stated: "I hadn't intended to stay in coaching."[7] Prior to the season beginning, practice was being held three times a week.[8] The latter portion of the schedule was revised and announced on January 8, 1924.[9] The alterations mainly involved date changes with games like the Mercer game being moved from January 9 to the 8th, the Washington & Lee and Virginia games swapped dates, and the Durham Elks game that was scheduled for January 4 was pushed back to January 22nd.[9] In addition, there were five open dates revealed.[9] The schedule, as in years past, features a northern tour that will go through the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia.[9]

Winton Green was named captain for the team for the 1923-24 season.[10][8] Guard Carl Mahler who played in the previous season, did not return to school and thus was not a part of the team.[10][8][11] Sam McDonald was announced to be returning in early December and thought to be the one to replace Mahler's guard spot,[8] but later did not participate.[N 2] Monk McDonald did not participate in practices in early December due to schoolwork and was not expected to be on the court until after Christmas.[8] Jack Cobb and Billy Devin got promoted to varsity from the previous season's Freshman team.[8] Cobb quickly became known as "Mr. Basketball" on campus.[7] Cobb was versatile on the court and able to shoot, rebound, and pass effectively.[7] Bill Dodderer, who was a star of the 1921 Freshman team, returned to school and got placed on varsity.[8] The only reserve not expected to return was Thomas Graham.[8]

The Tar Heel published a pre-season article where an author wrote: "Carolina has without a doubt the chance of her life to set fire to this neck of the woods during the coming season."[8] The writer cited the return of Seniors Carmichael, M. McDonald, and Green as being among the best players in the South.[8] Expectations were also high due to the performance of the team the previous two years, winning the Southern Conference Tournament in 1922 and going undefeated in the 1922–23 regular season, only to lose in the tournament due to fatigue and illness.[12][8] The Charlotte Observer wrote that Green, Cobb, and Jimmy Poole were the best looking forwards on the team in their season preview.[11] The writer elaborated on Poole saying that he weighed 120 pounds but is fast and can pass well.[11] The writer expressed belief that the bench for this team was much deeper than that of the 1921–22 conference tournament champions.[11] The Charlotte Observer felt Carolina's schedule was "exceptionally hard" and pointed to the Mercer game being a tough one after Christmas break since they were runner's up in the conference the year before.[11]

1923–24 North Carolina Tar Heels roster

Name	Position	Year	Hometown
Cartwright Carmichael	C, G	Senior	Durham, North Carolina
Jack Cobb	F	Sophomore	Durham, North Carolina
Billy Devin	C, G	Sophomore	Oxford, North Carolina
Bill Dodderer	C, G	Sophomore	Waynesville, North Carolina
Winton Green	F	Senior	Wilmington, North Carolina
Troy Johnson	F	Freshman?	Bessemer City, North Carolina
Donald Koonce	F, G	Sophomore	Wilmington, North Carolina
Henry Lineberger	G	Senior	Belmont, North Carolina
Monk McDonald	G	Senior	Charlotte, North Carolina
Sam McDonald	G	Sophomore?	Charlotte, North Carolina
Dan Penton	G	Junior	Wilmington, North Carolina
Jimmy Poole	F	Junior	Greensboro, North Carolina
Johnny Purser	G	Senior	Charlotte, North Carolina
Reference:[13]

Schedule[14][12]

Date time, TV	Opponent	Result	Record	Site city, state
Regular season
December 15, 1923*	at Durham Elks	W 33–20	1–0	Durham, NC
December 30, 1923*	at Charlotte YMCA	W 32–29	2–0	Charlotte, NC
January 8, 1924*	Mercer	W 35–23	3–0	Bynum Gymnasium  Chapel Hill, NC
January 16, 1924*	Guilford	W 50–22	4–0	Bynum Gymnasium  Chapel Hill, NC
January 19, 1924*	at Davidson	W 37–27	5–0	Davidson, NC
January 22, 1924*	Durham Elks	W 49–23	6–0	Bynum Gymnasium  Chapel Hill, NC
January 23, 1924*	at Elon	W 60–13	7–0	Bynum Gymnasium  Chapel Hill, NC
January 26, 1924*	at Wake Forest	W 32–16	8–0	Wake Forest, NC
January 31, 1924*	Duke Rivalry	W 31–20	9–0	Bynum Gymnasium  Chapel Hill, NC
February 2, 1924*	at VMI	W 40–25	10–0	Lexington, VA
February 4, 1924*	at Catholic	W 35–22	11–0	Washington, D.C.
February 5, 1924	at Maryland	W 26–20	12–0 (1–0)	UMD Gymnasium  College Park, MD
February 6, 1924*	at Navy			Annapolis, MD
February 7, 1924*	at Lynchburg	W 36–26	13–0	Lynchburg, VA
February 8, 1924	at Washington and Lee	W 19–16	14–0 (2–0)	Lexington, VA
February 9, 1924	at Virginia	W 33–20	15–0 (3–0)	Charlottesville, VA
February 14, 1924	South Carolina	W 53–19	16–0 (4–0)	Bynum Gymnasium  Chapel Hill, NC
February 16, 1924*	William & Mary	W 54–16	17–0	Bynum Gymnasium  Chapel Hill, NC
February 18, 1924	NC State Rivalry	W 44–9	18–0 (5–0)	Bynum Gymnasium  Chapel Hill, NC
February 19, 1924*	at Duke Rivalry	W 23–20	19–0	The Ark  Durham, NC
February 21, 1924*	Wake Forest	W 33–12	20–0	Bynum Gymnasium  Chapel Hill, NC
February 23, 1924	at NC State Rivalry	W 41–24	21–0 (6–0)	Raleigh, NC
February 27, 1924	Washington and Lee	W 26–17	22–0 (7–0)	Bynum Gymnasium  Chapel Hill, NC
Southern Conference Tournament
February 29, 1924*	Kentucky SoCon Tournament First Round / Rivalry	W 41–20	23–0	Atlanta Memorial Auditorium  Atlanta, GA
March 1, 1924*	Vanderbilt SoCon Tournament Quarterfinals	W 37–20	24–0	Atlanta Memorial Auditorium  Atlanta, GA
March 3, 1924*	Mississippi State SoCon Tournament Semifinals	W 33–23	25–0	Atlanta Memorial Auditorium  Atlanta, GA
March 4, 1924*	Alabama SoCon Tournament Championship	W 26–18	26–0	Atlanta Memorial Auditorium  Atlanta, GA
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.

Aftermath

On March 4, The Tar Heel reported that Coach Shepard would be leaving in March for China to work as a representative for the Liggett and Myers Tobacco Company.[6] His departure caused "a great deal of regret" for the student body.[6] In 1943, after spending six months researching material, the Helms Athletic Foundation named the team retroactive national champions.[15][16][17] Carmichael and Cobb were named an All-Americans at the Forward position for 1924.[15][16] In 2009, the Premo-Porretta Power Poll added rankings for the 1895–96 through 1947–48 seasons, which also deemed the Tar Heels national champions for the 1923–24 season.[18]

References

Footnotes

1. The school was known as the University of North Carolina until February 1963.[1]
2. There are two reasons reported for Sam McDonald's absence. In North Carolina's yearbook, the Yackety Yack, for the 1923–24 school year, it was written that McDonald believed his schoolwork to be too demanding and did not participate.[10][11] On March 4, 1924 in an article, The Tar Heel reported that McDonald was declared ineligible for the season and then McDonald served as an assistant coach to Shepard with the Freshman squad.[6]

Citations

1. Vance Barron (February 6, 1963). "Pearsall Group Recommends 5-Part Plan For University". The Daily Tar Heel. p. 1. Retrieved October 27, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
2. Lucas 2010, p. 10.
3. Lucas 2010, pp. 10–11.
4. "Norman Shepard Takes Charge Varsity Team". The Tar Heel. January 16, 1923. p. 1. Retrieved October 27, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
5. R. C. Maultsby (January 16, 1923). "Basketball Occupies Chief Place In Southern Sports". The Tar Heel. p. 4. Retrieved October 27, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
6. R. C. Maultsby (March 4, 1924). "Norman Shepard Leaves For China". The Tar Heel. p. 3. Retrieved October 27, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
7. Lucas 2010, p. 11.
8. "Attention Now On Basketball". The Tar Heel. December 7, 1923. p. 1. Retrieved October 27, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "21 Games Have Been Scheduled". The Tar Heel. January 8, 1924. p. 1. Retrieved October 27, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
10. Pickens 1924, p. 333.
11. "Basketball Team At University Working". The Charlotte Observer. December 14, 1923. p. 16. Retrieved October 27, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
12. Pickens 1924, p. 334.
13. Kirschner 2018, p. 153.
14. Kirschner 2018, p. 220.
15. "Glamack, Ex-Tar Heel Star, On All-Time, All-America". Asheville Citizen-Times. February 14, 1943. p. 12. Retrieved October 27, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
16. Marion Alexander (February 14, 1943). "Glamack Selected On All-Time Team". The Charlotte Observer. p. 16. Retrieved October 27, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
17. "UNC's Glamack & Cobb In Helms Hall Of Fame". The Charlotte News. March 8, 1949. p. 5-B. Retrieved October 27, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.
18. ESPN 2009, pp. 526 & 536–7.

Bibliography

• ESPN, ed. (2009). ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. New York: Ballantine Books ESPN Books. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
• Kirschner, Steve, ed. (2018). Carolina Basketball 2018-19 Facts & Records Book (PDF). Chapel Hill, North Carolina: UNC Athletic Communications Office. Archived (PDF) from the original on October 27, 2019.
• Lucas, Adam (2010). "A New Game Arrives on Campus". Carolina Basketball: A Century of Excellence. Chapel Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina Press. pp. 1–7. ISBN 978-0-8078-3410-7.
• Pickens, Robert Sylvester, ed. (1924). Yackety Yack. XXXIV. Chapel Hill, North Carolina: Publications Union of the University of North Carolina – via North Carolina Digital Heritage Center.
• Powell, Adam (2005). "Laying the Foundation: 1910–1911 to 1931–1932". University of North Carolina Basketball. Charleston, South Carolina: Arcadia Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7385-4150-1.